Suicide Fleet (1931)

It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Immediately after the United States enters World War 1 against Germany, three men from Coney Island by the names of "Baltimore" (William Boyd), "Dutch" (Robert Armstrong) and "Skeets" (James Gleason) enlist in the U.S. Navy and leave behind a young woman named "Sally" (Ginger Rogers) who each of them have fallen in love with. Unfortunately, Sally only loves one of them so the other two Dutch and Skeets) do their best to keep them apart by deceiving Baltimore about Sally's true affection for him. However, although Baltimore falls for their deception, they soon discover that he has his own plans for them as well--and his involves a deception towards the German Navy. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this was a comedy which had a bit of slapstick humor here and there but otherwise I didn't really see much humor in it. Of course, this film was produced over 80 years ago when budgets were rather strained so perhaps it deserves a bit more slack. Be that as it may, although it wasn't a great film by any means, I didn't think it was necessarily that bad either and for that reason I have rated it accordingly. Average.

Suicide Fleet will appeal to those interested in historical naval equipment, indeed, it provides us with nearly documentary footage of several types of contemporary nautical ships. Unfortunately for me I'm not all that interested in what the navy was like during World War One, and the drama (and comedy) in Suicide Fleet comes up lacking in every respect.We get what amounts to about a twenty minute prologue introducing us to three friends (William Boyd, Robert Armstrong and James Gleason) who are all smitten with the same girl (Ginger Rogers). Then the United States enters the Great War as it was called at the time, the three men all enlist and Ginger practically drops out of the picture. The rest of the movie alternates the exceptional documentary footage with weak comedy concerning our protagonists that reminds one of a poor episode of Gomer Pyle. From time to time we also receive some well-done action scenes, but a definite lack of audience involvement with any of the characters (Armstrong and the sometimes excellent Gleason are too frivolous and too hammy, Boyd is too stiff, and Rogers has simply disappeared) keeps us from caring very much about any of it.Hard to recommend for other than historical purposes, or if one is trying to follow the arc of Ginger Rogers' career (which is why I watched it). While she's around she's darned cute as a girl plying salt water taffy at Luna Park.

This is not a great movie, but it has some great shots of post World War I-era four-stacker destroyers, submarines, and three-masted wooden sailing ships that play combatant. A young Ginger Rogers is the love interest in a fairly hokey plot but I am glad that I watched it. The future Hopalong Cassidy plays the hero as a recalled to active duty Chief Petty Officer. Based upon a book by an active duty Navy Commander.

The threesome of Bill Boyd, Robert Armstrong, and James Gleason play Coney Island carnys vying for the hand of Ginger Rogers, a working gal who sells salt water taffy. With the outbreak of World War I, the threesome enlist and pursue Ginger from afar. The first half of this RKO Pathe production is hard going, with the three male leads chewing up the scenery with overcooked one-liners and 'snappy' dialogue that quickly grows tiresome. The second half concentrates on action sequences as the US Navy pursues both a German merchant cruiser and a U-boat. These sequences are lively and well-filmed, but overall this is an overlong and unsatisfying comedy-drama with a flat ending. For fans of the stars only.